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Jilted bride trashes wedding dress in photo shoot, felt 'empowered'

A bride-to-be whose boyfriend up and left her just 10 days before their wedding has shown her resilience in a stunning way: by destroying her $500 bridal gown in a photo shoot that has left her feeling “empowered” and that resonates with many online.

“Just the look on your face proves that you are way better off without him. Your smile is infectious and you can conquer the world!” noted one of the thousands of Facebook commenters impressed by Kira Coleman of South East Queensland, Australia, who trashed her dress with paint and a pair of scissors as a way to rise up from her heartbreak.

(Photo: Nicola Brander)

“At the beginning of the shoot I started to have some mixed emotions, but those feelings quickly left when I realized how much fun I was having and how empowered I really felt,” Coleman tells Yahoo Lifestyle, adding that she didn’t even break down and cry when her photographer, Nicola Brander, stopped shooting. “I was absolutely fine. I felt like I could finally move on.”

Brander, who had originally been booked to photograph Coleman’s wedding on Aug. 19, tells Yahoo Lifestyle that she was at first a bit taken aback by Coleman’s updated request but that she quickly got on board.

(Photo: Nicola Brander)

“I had never done a shoot like that before, but seeing the photos afterwards of how beautiful and strong she looked was amazing to see,” says Brander, who has received more than 6,000 reactions to the photos on her Facebook page. In a separate, private group posting, she adds, the images have prompted more than 16,000 reactions.

“I think she is an inspiration to other people who are going through the same thing, and her positive attitude towards life is inspiring,” the photographer adds. “I think the concept was really good and it was like a shoot to not only make her realize she’s beautiful and worth it but to also help her to move on too.”

(Photo: Nicola Brander)

Coleman was with her boyfriend for two years and the two have children together (though she declined to give further details). She says he left without notice. “I thought [he] was the love of my life,” Coleman told ABC Sunshine Coast, adding that they had already spent nearly $4,000 on the small, private ceremony they had planned for Noosa. “We had accommodation booked, the photographer, the celebrant and the dress.”

(Photo: Nicola Brander)

Still, despite the end of their relationship, Coleman says her ex is a good father. “We talk a lot, contact between us is great,” she says. “He is a good guy and still supports me if I need it.”

And the fate of the destroyed wedding dress? “I haven’t decided yet,” she admits. “I’m thinking about making a shadow box with some of the fabric and the photos Nicola took.”